Location: Tingri Shekar, Tibet, China, (28� 34' 0? N, 86� 38' 0? E)
Date: 3 May 2003; 10.25am
Camera: Canon G1
Tingri Shekar is the main though small town on the Tingri Plains, situated approximately 60 km north-west of Mount Everest and just over 50 km from the Nepali border. The Plain is approximately 4,300 meters high and the air is always crisp. Sunrise is really pretty with the thin air bringing out the glows of the dawning sun. This town is frequented by climbers and expeditions to Cho Oyu, which looms across the horizon. It is a place of raw beauty. It is also one of the driest parts of Tibet, being behind the mighty Himalayas- the monsoon clouds dumped their rain when they cool ascending the height of the Himalayas. It is also very poor with little trade crossing this way. Things have changed a little in the last few years with more tourists coming this way to the Everest Base Camp or overland to Nepal. A few of the old houses in town had been rebuilt- a sure sign that things are a-changing. It may stay this way for a couple more years as there are no public transport connecting this place to other parts of Tibet yet. But don�t hold your breath- this is China after all. So if you still want to see a beautiful landscape relatively untouched by developments and still un-swamped by tourists in China, this is it.
